Covering for front vent

[inhof009]

I've got a vent for the driver heater that is always open to air, and can flow through the heater when it is switched to "fresh air". However, in the winter times, it serves no purpose other than drag (why pull fresh air instead of more efficiently heating the interior?).

So I put some duct tape on it, which is working fine, but it occasionally requires re-taping. Was wondering if anyone knows of a cover/plug commercially available or has custom made one and could give me some suggestions?

This is the vent:

 

[jazty]

Maybe take a closer look on the inside. On my Thomas there is a little lever down by the driver's left foot which is used for opening or closing a flap that lets air flow through that vent. It is labelled "Recirc" and "Fresh".

 

[inhof009]

Maybe take a closer look on the inside. On my Thomas there is a little lever down by the driver's left foot which is used for opening or closing a flap that lets air flow through that vent. It is labelled "Recirc" and "Fresh".

I know I have a selector for "recirc" and "fresh" similarly to that, but it's a switch that controls something electronically. Even if I have it set to "recir", I can hear the wind whistling in that vent, so I'm pretty sure it doesn't fully "close" the vent.

 

[jazty]

Might want to get down there with a flash light and poke around then. You might have an electronic flap that opens and closes a vent down there. That vent might have damaged weather stripping. I know mine did. The adhesive had mostly failed and the weather stripping was dangling. I replaced the weather stripping to keep the wind out.


Alternatively you can engineer an outside manually applied cover, but having an easy way to open close the vent from the drivers seat is a nice convenience.

 

[inhof009]

Might want to get down there with a flash light and poke around then. You might have an electronic flap that opens and closes a vent down there. That vent might have damaged weather stripping. I know mine did. The adhesive had mostly failed and the weather stripping was dangling. I replaced the weather stripping to keep the wind out.


Alternatively you can engineer an outside manually applied cover, but having an easy way to open close the vent from the drivers seat is a nice convenience.

Didn't know there was a flap that was actually supposed to move. Could be the issue. I'll look into that, thanks!

 

[jazty]

Every bus manufacturer does things a little differently, but it's worth a looksee anyway!